Location And Weather Data Improve Profits And Emergency Response

Location isn’t just about real estate any more. For a commercial lender financing nation-wide recreational equipment dealers selling boats and RVs, GISi offers a combination of weather forecasts and mapping. It partners with Esri, the mapping, data and analytics powerhouse.

The web application allows OEMs to look at sales forecasts for specific boats and RV segments and run What-If scenarios to see what forecast drivers will impact sales forecasting. Essentially it’s on the fly predictive modeling leveraging client data along with Esri Tapestry Data and BAO data sets, said Dawn Siegel, a managing partner for GISi Private Industry.

“If the forecast or temperature changes a few degrees, that can impact the number of boats that sell,” said Siegel. “We help them provide predictive modeling on ordering boats and can show how that dealer should move or redistribute their inventory throughout the nation. This application allows them to efficiently analyze and predict when to move specific inventory around the nation to meet buyer needs and reduce the risk of a surplus in inventory. The OEMs use the application to produce types of boats based on forecast.”

Dealers can hold inventory for 90 days before payments are due so they enough stock to meet demand, but not 120 days worth.

“Financial institutions are financing dealers and providing GIS tools to ensure those dealers will be as successful as possible,” she added. The app is Web-based so dealers and manufacturers can access it from anywhere.

Geospatial information is vital for responding to natural disasters as well.

Banks can aggregate merchant and consumer transactions along with weather feeds to analyze impact from hurricanes, floods or earthquakes.

“Financial institutions (FIs) are quantifying risk and identifying impacted or potentially impacted consumers and merchants before and after events such as hurricanes, tornadoes or flooding,” said Siegel. “We provide the FI the ability to spatially visualize and analyze data, generate needed reports, and effectively communicate the extent of the event using the common language of location.”

Financial institutions can provide faster and more targeted customer service with the mapping information, she added.

Immediately after a disaster, customer service representatives can contact affected customers, both commercial and non-commercial, and offer help through no-interest cash advances, no payments for months or no interest accrual, Siegel said.

“In the past it would take our clients weeks to determine the list of potential impacted merchants and consumers, now they can see the possible impact within minutes. This process reduced the number of customers they had to contact by 70 to 80 percent because it provides a higher level of accuracy. That results in huge cost savings, while offering help quicker to those who need it.”

Big box home supply stores like The Home Depot or Lowe’s can use mapping and population data and real-time weather feeds to prepare for hurricanes.

“They can determine the number of residences or businesses impacted during or immediately after a natural disaster event. This allows retailers to estimate the appropriate type and amount of inventory from the closest warehouse or retail center to the impacted area,” Siegel explained.

I like the pace of technology, especially in finance where it can move so fast. I'm on Jay Palter's list of fintech influencers to follow in 2018, although it takes a bit of scrolling: http://jaypalter.ca/2018/01/2018-fintech-influencers. In addition to Forbes I write for th...